Numerically the Germans had the advantage. Their frontline combat strength in May was ~4,000 planes compared to ~1,800 for the RAF (Fighter,Bomber and Coastal Commands),[Source: AIR 22]. Things however changed after the Battle of France, as the LW lost a lot of planes in May.
According to report AIR 40/1207 on 29 June their total number of Bomber, Fighter and Ground attack aircraft was 3,552 . The RAF had ~1,600 in Fighter, Bomber and Coastal Commands on 2 July . Ratio of 2.2 to 1.
It was the RAF’s Fighter Command which was going to bear the brunt of the offensive and here things were better in terms of ratios. File AIR 40/1207 (available in the Ticom folder) gives for the LW on 29 June 1,464 single and twin engine fighters versus the RAF’s 816 . However if we look only at SE fighters we have LW - 1,107 vs RAF – 672. A superiority of 1.65 to 1.
Keep in mind that not all the LW fighters were in the West.
The Battle of Britain officially lasted from 10 July to 31 October 1940. Here I’ve also included the strength returns for May and June but unfortunately I don’t have the figures for October.
Types | 2-May-40 | 2-Jun-40 | 2-Jul-40 | 2-Aug-40 | 2-Sep-40 | |||||
Est | Serv | Est | Serv | Est | Serv | Est | Serv | Est | Serv | |
Spitfire | 264 | 129 | 272 | 181 | 304 | 243 | 328 | 245 | 328 | 208 |
Hurricane | 272 | 168 | 184 | 102 | 368 | 282 | 540 | 341 | 638 | 405 |
Blenheim | 96 | 68 | 112 | 80 | 112 | 68 | 96 | 57 | 96 | 57 |
Defiant | 32 | 25 | 32 | 21 | 32 | 24 | ||||
Gladiator | 8 | 7 | ||||||||
Total | 632 | 365 | 568 | 363 | 816 | 618 | 996 | 664 | 1,102 | 701 |
Est= Establishment , Serv= Serviceable , Source: AIR 22 - Air Ministry: Periodical Returns, Intelligence Summaries and Bulletins (available in the Ticom folder)
What do the numbers tell us? First of all the fighting in France was responsible for a reduction in the strength of FC . By July however production of new aircraft has raised FC strength by 44%. Despite the losses from the German fighters strength continues to rise in August and September.
The twin heroes for the British side are the Spitfire and the Hurricane fighters. Numerically it is the Hurricane that contributes more to FC but movies and books focus on the Spit.
Compared to the Bf-109 used by the Luftwaffe only the Spit is equal in performance. Each aircraft has its strong and weak side. The Bf-109 is better armed (20mm guns) and performs better in climb and dive maneuvers. The Spit is better in turn combat. Both are short ranged.
Looking at the numbers it is easy to see why the Germans failed. In order to defeat the RAF they would need a much larger fighter force. What-if scenarios that claim the Germans lost because they started bombing cities instead of airports are overlooking this fundamental problem.
By 7 September the LW fighter strength is 1,037 (S.E.-831, T.E.-206) [Source: Sturmvogel} versus 1,102 for the RAF .Game over!
It should be mentioned that by the end of the campaign both sides were running low on trained pilots. Unfortunately I don’t have data on this aspect.
The Brits have radar, AA defenses and fighter strength comparable to that of the Germans. They are also able to retrieve their shot down pilots and put them back to service. German pilots who parachute are captured and detained. The odds were simply impossible for the German side.
When the situation was reversed, it took the Allies years and a crushing numerical superiority in order to defeat the Luftwaffe in Western Europe.
I don't think the Germans had any intention of invading Britain; Operation Sealion was war-gamed in the '70s. In the unlikely event of the RAF being defeated, the Germans would have to mine the channel to keep the Royal Navy out. Germany had a small window of opportunity where they could have an amphibious landing. I'm not sure that they had landing craft.
ReplyDeleteTroops that were landed could not have been supplied.
As far as I know, the Spitfire was used to intercept fighters while the Hurricane was used to take on bombers.
Yes, the numbers are interesting to see.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with the poster above - any plan of invasion seems very far-fetched after the Dunkirk evacuation went successfully, as the logistics required by a large-scale invasion just couldn't be maintained, not to mention the threat of a RN sortie.
I have a book (in my language, forgot the author) in which it said that pilots (and occasionally, airfields) were a problem, but after the initial few months, the production figures of the fighters were such that lacking fighters was not a problem at all. In addition they had a very good service for picking up pilots downed over the channel, so many of these shoot-downs saw the pilot survive and fight again.
So even with continued attacks on airfields (which are quoted to be a problem), they simply did not have the capacity to destroy the RAF to a degree where they would have air supremacy over the channel. To do that they would've needed a significant numerical superiority and fighter planes with more endurance.
The detoriating quality of the average LW pilot is also noted, at the outset of the combat there were many veteran LW pilots which were very problematic to fight (and many RAF pilots were inexperienced still), after some time the average training and experience was quite even.
What about the Losses the Luftwaffe were still suffering in May 1940 at the hands of the French?
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